Three-dimensional game with pegs and beads

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a three-dimensional board game for two or more players. The game may also be easily adapted to be a video game. The game board is a flat surface with upstanding pegs arranged on the base in rows and intersecting columns. The pegs may be detachable from the board surface. The board surface may include indicia for playing another game such as chess, checkers, or backgammon in addition to an array of holes for receiving removable pegs. The pegs are adapted to receive beads with a central aperture drilled through them. The beads are marked to be associated with a particular player, with two or more players being possible. According to the game rules, the beads are separated into one set for each player. The players in turn place one bead on any of the pegs. To win the game, a player must align, in an uninterrupted sequence, a specific number of beads, either horizontally, diagonally or vertically. Beads may be stacked upon one another thereby adding playing levels, or planes, and complexity to the game.

DESCRIPTION

[0001] This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Serial No. 60/383,329, entitled “Three-Dimensional Game withPegs and Beads”, filed on May 24, 2002, the disclosure of which isherein incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] This invention relates, in general, to board games forentertainment. More specifically, this invention relates to athree-dimensional board game involving the strategic placement of beadsupon vertically extending pegs placed in an array above a flat surface.

[0004] 2. Related Art

[0005] The use of board games and other games for entertainment purposesis known. In addition, such games requiring the strategic positioningand movement of a player's pieces, like chess and checkers, are known.Several attempts have been made to produce challenging board games thatare simple to set up, easy to learn and can be played by a number ofplayers of variable skill levels.

[0006] U.S. Pat. No. 5,116,061 (Zentner, Jr.) discloses a rotatablymounted round pedestal on a base. The pedestal has a number of pegs ofgenerally equal length projecting upwardly around its periphery toreceive marked hollow beads from each of two players. The game is wonwhen a player aligns four beads on the pegs in a row eitherhorizontally, diagonally or vertically.

[0007] U.S. Pat. No. 5,183,256 (Hale) discloses a round game board witha plurality of diametric rows of pegs which are radially taller near thecenter. The pegs receive hollow beads according to rolls of dice by theplayers.

[0008] Leisure Dynamics, Inc. has produced a board game called “ScoreFour” providing an array of pegs upon which a plurality of beads may beplaced. Each turn, a player places a single bead upon any peg in thearray. To win the game, a player must align four beads in uninterruptedsequence upon the pegs.

[0009] However, none of these games possesses the unique configuration,versatility or specific advantages of the invented three-dimensionalboard game.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] According to the objects of the invention, the present inventionis a three-dimensional board game for two or more players. The game mayalso be easily adapted to be a video game. The game board is a generallyflat surface with upstanding pegs arranged on the base in intersectingrows and columns. In the preferred embodiment, the game board comprisesgenerally 3-10 rows and 3-10 columns. Typically, the pegs are about thesame length so that they extend upwardly to about the same height. Thepegs are adapted to receive a plurality of beads, preferably with acentral shaft drilled through each bead so that the beads may be slidonto the pegs. The beads are marked and/or shaped to be associated witha particular player, with two or more players being possible.

[0011] According to the preferred game rules, each player begins withone distinctive set of beads. The players, in turn, place one bead onany of the pegs, with the object being first to obtain, over severalturns, an uninterrupted alignment of a specific number of beads, eitherhorizontally (at any bead level), diagonally or vertically. Due to thepreferred three-dimensional nature of the game, these uninterruptedalignments of beads may extend from row to row or column to column onany level, may extend vertically on a single peg, or may extenddiagonally on any level or diagonally from level to level.

[0012] Preferably, the upstanding pegs are detachably inserted into theplaying surface. For example, the pegs may be removable such that theystand rigid and straight to receive the beads when in place, but lieflat in, for example, a pull-out drawer when not in use. This way,changes to the game board are easily accomplished via removal of rowsand/or columns of pegs. This way, the pegs may also be easily removedfrom the board surface for safety and convenient storage. Additionally,the game may be made more challenging by removing individual pegs fromthe array if desirable.

[0013] Detachable pegs may also facilitate the playing of differentboard games on the same board surface. For example, the surface beneaththe pegs may be painted with a standard checkers, chess or backgammonplaying board.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014]FIG. 1 is a top, side perspective view of one embodiment of theinstant invention with a rectangular board and a pedestal holding adrawer and a timer/clock.

[0015]FIGS. 1A, 1B and 1C are top, perspective views of embodiments ofdifferent beads according to the present invention.

[0016]FIG. 2 is a side view of the embodiment depicted in FIG. 1 fromthe point of view of the arrow B in FIG. 1.

[0017]FIG. 3 is a top view of the embodiment depicted in FIG. 1.

[0018]FIG. 4 is a top, side perspective view of another embodiment ofthe present invention with a different number of rows and columns ofpegs on the board game, compared to the embodiment depicted in FIG. 1,which is illustrated as being adjustable by removing pegs.

[0019]FIG. 5 is a top, side perspective view of the embodiment depictedin FIG. 4, but showing also several alignments of beads that may be usedto win the game.

[0020]FIG. 6 is a top view of a preferred embodiment of the inventedgame board with a standard checkers or chess board design and aneight-by-eight array of holes for receiving removable pegs.

[0021]FIG. 7 is a top view of a preferred embodiment of the inventedgame board with a backgammon playing board and a four-by-four array ofholes for receiving removable pegs.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] Referring now to the Figures, there are depicted several, but notall, embodiments of the invented three-dimensional (3˜D) game. FIG. 1shows a perspective view of a preferred embodiment 10 of the inventionwith a generally rectangular board surface 12. Three-dimensional game 10has board surface 12, and, optionally, board pedestal 14, which supportsand raises the board off of a table or other structure. Preferably,board surface 12 rotates on pedestal 14 to facilitate easier viewing ofthe board by all players and to allow each player to more easilyposition game pieces. Also in the preferred embodiment, pedestal 14 mayinclude a plurality of pull-out drawers for storing game pieces or otheritems.

[0023] Parallel rows of upstanding pegs 16 are arranged on board surface12 (in, for example, the direction of arrow A). Also on board surface12, parallel columns of pegs 16 are arranged (in, for example, thedirection of arrow B). Preferably, the number of rows equals the numberof columns, but this is not required. The example board shown in FIG. 1includes four columns and four rows, but fewer or more may be used.

[0024] On pegs 16 are placed, for example, white beads 18 and blackbeads 18′, as shown in the figures. A central aperture 20 is drilledthrough each bead 18. Aperture 20 inner diameter (i.d.) is adapted tofit and slide easily over the outer diameter (o.d.) of pegs 16. Thisway, the beads 18 may be conveniently placed on pegs 16 above the boardsurface 12 or above lower beads 18. Preferably pegs 16 are long enoughto accommodate 3˜10 beads stacked upon one another so that such pegswould provide for 3˜10 playing levels or planes, respectively.

[0025] In the preferred embodiment, beads 18 are marked such that theymay be associated with a particular player. For example, in FIG. 1A,bead 18 is white; in FIG. 1B, bead 18′ is black; and, in FIG. 1C, bead18″ has a contrasting, central, colored stripe. Beads 18 may be markedin any number of different ways, there being provided a different set ofbeads, approximately 20˜50 in number, for each player. While sphericalbeads are preferred, alternative shapes are possible, with a specificshape being associated with a particular player. For example, youngerplayers might enjoy one player playing with round beads and anotherplaying with square beads or they may prefer animals or otherdistinctive forms such as, for example, monkey-shaped beads vs.tiger-shaped beads.

[0026] In FIG. 1, there are eight beads in place on the pegs. Startingin the leftmost column of FIG. 1, and traversing from the front row tothe rear, there is a white bead in the front row, a white bead in thesecond row, and a white bead stacked on a black bead in the third row.In the second column, there is one white bead followed by two blackbeads. In the third column from the left, there is only one black bead.Thus, this figure shows play wherein seven beads have been played in thebottom level, and one bead has been stacked in the second level.

[0027]FIGS. 2 and 3 further illustrate the advancement of the game asshown in FIG. 1 to include multiple rows and columns and multipleplaying levels, or planes. As the game is played, all rows, columns andplaying levels may or may not be used.

[0028]FIG. 4 demonstrates another embodiment 100 of the presentinvention. In this case, three-dimensional game 100 has just three rows(in the direction of the A arrow) and three columns (in the direction ofthe B arrow). By contrast, game embodiment 10 depicted in FIGS. 1-3 hasfour (4) sets of both rows and columns. Modifications in the number ofrows and columns may be accomplished via a separate board, or boards,having different numbers of rows and columns of pegs. More preferably,variations to the playing board may be easily made by removing orinserting detachable pegs 16 to the board surface 12. In the removablepeg option, the players may remove any unwanted pegs prior to play toarrive at, for example, a three-by-three array. In the preferredembodiment, the pegs are long enough to at least accommodate as manybeads as there are rows or columns. For example, a four by four boardshould have pegs at least long enough to accommodate fourvertically-stacked beads.

[0029] Pegs 16 may be attached to the board surface 12 via holes 22drilled into the upper surface of the board. A sufficient friction fithold may temporarily fix the pegs in place on the playing board. Thisway, more complexity may be achieved in the game through the addition ofrows and/or columns. Also this way, pegs 16 may be conveniently removedfrom the board surface 12 and stored, for example, in drawer 24 inpedestal 14, for safety and/or convenience during non-use of the game.When the pegs 16 are removed, the board surface 12 may be used asanother game board surface. For example, the surface of the boardbeneath the removable pegs may be painted or otherwise marked with astandard checkers, chess or backgammon playing surface motif, as shownin FIGS. 6 and 7. For embodiments featuring a standard chess or checkersboard design, the upright pegs may be positioned at or near the centerof each square in the eight-by-eight matrix or at the meeting of thesquare corners. In another embodiment, the entire board surface 12 maybe removed from the pedestal 14 and flipped to reveal a differentplaying surface. In another embodiment, when the game is not in use, theboard surface 12 may serve as an end table or other support. In stillanother embodiment, a three-dimensional game according to the presentinvention may be constructed for traveling. Preferably, for thetraveling game, the number of pieces will be kept to a minimum and thepieces may be generally smaller than those of a game for home use.

[0030] To play the game, several sets of distinctive beads 18, 18′, 18″,for example, are provided, one for each player. The first player placesa bead on a selected peg 16. In turn, each of the players place beads,one at a time, from their sets on selected pegs. The object of the gameis to be the first player to align, in an uninterrupted sequence(typically a line), a pre-determined number of beads eitherhorizontally, vertically or diagonally. Preferably, the number of beadsis the same, or generally the same, as the number of rows and/orcolumns. The winning bead sequence may be on or terminate at a second,third or fourth playing level above board surface 12. For diagonallines, the winning sequence may also terminate at, for example, thesecond third or fourth playing level.

[0031] In some cases, to limit the length of a game or to make the gamemore challenging a clock, or clocks, may be used. For example, in suchsituations, each move may be timed and the turn forfeited if the move isnot made within the designated time limit. A timing clock 26 (or clocks,as the case may be) may be provided, for example, in pedestal 14.

[0032]FIG. 5 illustrates some of the many bead sequences that may beconsidered “winners” according to the three-dimensional game of thepresent invention. For example, rules of game play for the four-by-fourpeg array in FIG. 5 may allow a three or four-bead sequence to win thegame. FIG. 5 illustrates several of the many combinations of three beadsthat could win the game. Sequence “I” is a horizontal line of threewhite beads on the first level (directly against the board surface 12)in the second column from the left, and sequence “ii” is a vertical lineof three white beads in the farthest column to the right, next to thelast row. Sequence “iii” comprises three beads in the followingpositions: bottom level, second column from left, third row from front;second level, third column from left, second row; and third level,rightmost column, first row. Therefore, sequence “iii” forms anuninterrupted diagonal line.

[0033] Alternatively, the board in FIG. 5 could be used for play whereinsequences of four or more beads are needed to win. For example, fourrows and four columns are present, so many lines of four are possible,or, if the pegs are high enough to permit more than four stacked beads,the rules may provide for the winning line to be five or more verticalbeads.

[0034] The game of the present invention may also be easily adapted tobe a video game. In this case, the structural features of the game, forexample, the board surface, pegs and beads, will not physically exist inthree dimensions, but will be represented as such on a video screen.These types of embodiments of the present invention may be accomplishedwith conventional programming techniques. Preferably, advantageousfeatures present in the board game such as, for example, the ability torotate the game to view different angles, will be present in thecomputer game as well.

[0035] Although this invention has been described above with referenceto particular means, materials and embodiments, it is to be understoodthat the invention extends instead to all embodiments within the scopeof the following claims.

I claim:
 1. A versatile game board comprising a plurality of rows andcolumns of upright, removable pegs extending vertically from holes in aflat board surface wherein said pegs are adapted to receive a pluralityof beads and the board surface includes indicia for another game.
 2. Thegame board of claim 1 wherein the indicia provided on said board surfacedefines a standard checkers or chess playing board so that when saidpegs are removed a game of chess or checkers may be played.
 3. The gameboard of claim 2 wherein upon the standard checkers or chess board isdefined an eight-by-eight matrix of upright pegs for receiving beads. 4.The game board of claim 1 wherein the indicia marked on said boardsurface defines a backgammon playing board so that when said pegs areremoved a game of backgammon may be played.
 5. The game board of claim 1wherein said rows and said columns of upright pegs are arranged in asymmetric array with an equal number of columns and rows.
 6. The gameboard of claim 1 wherein the board is mounted on a rotating platform. 7.A game board comprising a plurality of rows and columns of upright,removable pegs, the pegs being adapted to receive a plurality of beadsand extending vertically from holes in a flat board surface, wherein theflat board surface is mounted upon a rotating pedestal.
 8. The gameboard of claim 7 wherein the game board surface is elevated upon thepedestal to a height of generally about 2-8 inches.
 9. The game board ofclaim 7 wherein a clock is seated in the pedestal for timing game play.10. The game board of claim 7 wherein a plurality of pull-out drawersare built into the pedestal for storing game pieces or other items.